i ssue 42
u
championing our sector
u president’s
column
. . .. 1 u Publications. . . . . . . . . . 19
. . .. . . . . 4 u prof. development. . . . . .21
u ESOS TPS LEGISLATION . . .. .... 5 u aiec 2012: u Country
workshops
. . 24
France . . . . 7 u on
your behalf . . . . . . . . 25 ... 9 u around the world . . . . . .26 . u pathways enrolment trends . 10 u mark your calendar . . . .29 u news from the sigs . . . . . . . 14 u research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 focus :
u news from the secretariat .
March 2012 t h e n e w s l e t t e r f o r a u s t r a l i a n i n t e r n at i o n a l e d u c at i o n professionals
Championing our Sector The cover story in a recent edition of The Economist magazine lamented the current negative media and political commentary on the role of the City of London as the financial services capital of the world. The article emphasised the often unrecognised spin-off benefits that the financial services industry had for the wider UK economy. These included significant value adding to the legal, accounting and even accommodation service industries. There was a strong view expressed that the financial services industry in the City of London needed to do much more to promote itself and be better understood. Without drawing too many parallels here, a similar public relations challenge often confronts the international education industry in Australia. Just when we think that we are becoming a known quantity, headlines appear such as "Migrants taking Australians Jobs", "International Students Work for Less Pay" and " International Students Threaten their Teachers". Good news stories that celebrate the success of Australia's international student graduate outcomes, their life journeys as well as the benefits that accrue to our economy are all too few and far between. Therefore, it surely behoves each of us, as international education professionals, to champion the advantages that a robust international education industry provides to Australia. Appropriate fora you can be involved in as a sector champion include your local community (be that at regional town, city or state level), the institution in which you work or study and within the international education profession itself.